Blind stitching attachment for sewing machines



Feb. 23, 1954 w. c. HAINES 2,669,956

BLIND STITCHING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Aug. 24, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR WILLIAM C. HAINES ATTORNEY W. C. HAINES Feb. 23, 1954 BLIND STITCHING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Aug. 24, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR WILLIAM C. HAlN ES ATTORNEY Feb. 23, 1954 w. (3. HAINES 2,669,956

BLIND STITCHING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Aug. 24, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR WILLIAM C. HA INES ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 23, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BLIND STITCHING ATTACHIWENT FOR SEWING MACHINES 19 Claims.

This invention relates to a blind stitching mechanism in the form of an attachment for sewing machines, and the primary object of the invention is to provide a simple attachment for a sewing machine which can readily be attached to the machine by the average user, which requires a minimum of adjustment and which is easy to operate in the performance of blind stitching, as in making a hem.

While some blind stitching attachments are known in the art, they are highly complex devices and are expensive, and their complexity discourages use by the average user of the machine. The present attachment is extremely simple in construction, making it inexpensive to manufacture, and it is very easy to operate, having, in some forms of the invention, only one adjustment to make.

For a more comprehensive knowledge of the construction and operation of the attachment, reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which illustrative embodiments of the invention are shown, and reference is further made to the following specification wherein they are described.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of one form of the attachment.

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof.

Figure 2a is a cross section along line 2a-2a of Fig. 2.

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view thereof.

Figure 4 is a front elevation, partly in section, showing the manner in which the needle is deflected to engage the folded material for a blind stitch.

Figure 5 is a top plan view of a modification.

Figure 6 is a longitudinal, enlarged cross sectional detail thereof along the line 6-6 of Figure 5.

Figure 7 is a cross sectional detail thereof along the line 'l'! of Figure 5.

Figure. 8 shows a strip of material stitched in accordance with the teaching of this. invention.

Figure 9 is a plan view of an enlarged detail showing a modified form of presser wheel and its cooperating parts.

Figure 10 is a similar detail, partly in section.

Figure 11 is an enlarged plan view of a further modified form of presser wheel.

Figure 12 is an enlarged elevation of a further modified form of presser foot, and

Figure 13 is an enlarged vertical cross section thereof along the line i'3-l3.

Referring now to a preferred embodiment of the invention shown in Figure 1, the attachment comprises a presser foot l0 having journals ll forming bearings for a pin l2 upon which the presser foot shank I3 is pivotally mounted. The upper end of the shank l3 will be suitably formed for attachment to the presser bar of a sewing machine, the formation varying with the structure of the different types of sewing machinca The shank 13 has a certain amount of lateral play between the journals H and a set screw I! may be provided in each journa1 so that the presser foot may be adjusted either to the right or left with respect to the shank to align the needle receiving opening I5 of the foot with respect to the stitch hole in the needle plate of the machine. The set screws It may also be used to hold the shank rigid with respect to the foot, or other suitable means may be provided for this purpose.

The presser foot has a groove l1 extending longitudinally thereof along its bottom face and the opening I6 overlies said groove. One wall H of this groove has a revolution surface formed on a curvilinear generatrix as shown in Figure 2a for a purpose which will hereinafter be explained.

The presser foot extends forwardly to a position under the needle bar A of the machine (Fig ure 4) and the foot supports a shaft I9 loosely in the body thereof, the shaft straddling the opening 16. Loosely mounted for rotation and slight free movement in all directions on said shaft is a knurled presser wheel 20 having a protuberance or cam 2| formed on the left face thereof as. the attachment faces the operator, and as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings.

The presser wheel is closely adjacent the path of the needle of the machine so that when it is rotated, the cam 2| is periodically brought into engagement with the needle and deflects it slightly in its course as shown in Fig. 4 and as will further be explained. A spring or other suitable means 22 is fixed to the side of the presser foot by means of screw 23 and the free end of the spring bears resiliently on the projecting end of the shaft [9 which is notched to receive it to secure the shaft against loss, although the shaft has a certain amount of free play in its bearmgs.

The presser foot has a toe portion 24' extend-- ing forwardly thereof, and the left edge 25 of said toe is longitudinally aligned with the curvilinear wall it of the groove 11, thus forming a guiding edge for guiding the folded edge of the work material into said groove.- A lateral extension 26 is formed on said toe portion, plane the bottom thereof, but reduced thickness, and

this extension forms a support for the folded material as it is fed to the presser foot. It will be noted that the bottom of the left side of the presser foot, as seen in Fig. 4 for example, rests on a higher plane than the bottom of the presser foot on the opposite side of the wheel 20. This is for the purpose of allowing for the double thickness of the material, as shown in Fig. 4.

The width or depth of the groove l1, l1 may be varied according to the varying thicknesses of the material it may be desired to stitch. Or, as shown in Figures 12 and 13, a bottom plate Ml may be adjustably secured to the bottom of the presser foot by means of set screws 4 I The slots 42, through which the set screws pass in the plate 40, are slightly elongated, so that the plate may be adjusted laterally with respect to the curved wall l8", thus making the groove I1" wider or narrower, as may be desired, to accommodate the thickness of the fabric to be stitched.

In the operation of this device to blind stitch a hem, for example, the material to be stitched would be folded in a well known manner to form a base ply B and a folded edge C. The base ply B would be passed under the extension 26 and toe 24, with the folded edge C lying closely adjacent the edge 25 of the toe to guide it, and then the material would be fed into the machine and the machine put in operation. Stitching would at once begin to take effect on the base ply B, (see Figure 8) and as the material is fed under the presser wheel that wheel would begin to rotate, causing the cam 2| to rotate with it and periodically deflect the needle slightly. As the material is fed towards the presser wheel, the folded edge C will be guided into the groove [1, where the curved surface of the wall It, which is an extension of the edge 25, will lift the edge C slightly as shown in Figures 2a and 4 and present said edge, cleanly defined, to the deflected needle point which thereupon passes through the edge C and the base ply B, stitching them together at D. Continuous feeding of the material causes continuous rotation of the presser wheel 20, thereby moving cam 2| out of the path of the needle, so that the next few stitches will take effect on the base ply B at E only until a complete rotation of the wheel 20 has been accomplished, bringing the cam 2| again into the path of the needle. skipped blind stitch where the needle will stitch the base ply for a few stitches, as at E (before it is deflected by cam 2|), then the needle will catch the folded edge C at D as the needle is deflected, and then again stitch it to the base ply. The' stitches E penetrate the base ply only and do not unite the folded cloth. Only the stitches D connect the folded edge to the base ply. The interval between blind stitches D on the folded edge C may be varied by increasing or decreasing the diameter of the presser wheel. The amount of the deflection caused by the cam 2| must be very slight, so that the needle will not be deflected from the stitch hole in the needle plate of the machine (not shown). A strip of material stitched in accordance with the invention is shown in Figure 8, wherein the regular stitching is indicated at E and the blind stitches, binding the fold C to the base ply B, are shown at D.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Figures 5, 6 and '7, the construction is substantially the same, except that the presser wheel and its cooperating parts are omitted. In this construction the needle receiving opening [6' has a chamfered or beveled edge 2 l which is dis- This operation will result in a L posed in the path of the needle (not shown) and this edge 2 I serves as a cam to deflect the point of the needle enough to engage the folded edge which would be presented to it along the wall [8' of the groove H. In this instance, every stitch would be a blind stitch, binding the folded edge of the hem to the base ply.

Figures 9 and 10 show a further modification in which the presser wheel 20a has a cam 2la on its left side in the form of a truncated cone, and on the other side of the wheel, it has a small cam 2 la. A set screw 30 is provided in one leg of the presser foot and a tension spring 3| is socketed in the other leg thereof to constantly urge the wheel 20a to the right as shown in Figs. 9 and 10. As the wheel rotates under the movement of cloth fed beneath it, the cam 21a will periodically be brought into engagement with the set screw 30 to shift the wheel 20a to the left, bringing the cam 21a into contact with the needle (not shown) to deflect it as explained in connection with Figure 4. Figure 9 shows the cam in the position it would assume to make stitches E as shown in Figure 8, and Figure 10 shows it in the position to make blind stitches D, as shown in Figure 8.

Figure 11 shows a still further modified form of presser wheel 20a" in which the surface of the cam 2 lb is concave in outline. This wheel may be substituted for the wheels 20 or 20a, shown in Figures 1 and 10, respectively.

It will be understood that the specific constructions shown and described are presented to illustrate practical means of carrying out the invention, and that changes in the construction and design may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the following claims. r

I claim as my invention:

1. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding means extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, and having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture coinciding with at least an edge of said guiding means, and deflecting means within said aperture above the material guiding means adapted to deflect the point of a needle towards said edge as it passes through said aper-' ture.

2. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof for receiving and guiding a folded edge; and having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body of said foot, a wall of said aperture coinciding with at least one edge of said groove, and deflecting means within said aperture above the material guiding means adapted to deflect the point of the needle towards said edge as it passes through said aperture. I

3. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, said groove having one wall thereof formed with a curvilinear generatrix for engaging the folded edge of the material; said foot having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aper ure coi cidin with a least the eiitvi inear wall of said. oove, sai curvil ne r Wall raisin said. fold sli tly fo p sentation to a needle; an deflecting me n wi in s id averture above the material, uidin means adapted o deflect the p nt o a eed e as it passes through said apertur whereby it catches the folded d e in the formation of a Stitch.

4. A blind stitchin tt hment or a sewi machine c mprisin a pr s r fo t h vin a han por on f r a tachm n o t presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material f l uidi m ans ext nding longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, said foot having a needle re, ceivin ap rtur extendin thro h the body thereof. a wall of said aperture coincidin With at 1east an edge of said guiding means, the wall of said aperture being contoured, a portion of said contoured wall lying in the path of a needle and adapted to deflect the needle towards said edge as the needle passes through said aperture.

5 A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guide ing groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof for receiving and guiding a folded edge; said foot having a needle receiving aper= ture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture coinciding with at least one edge of said groove; deflecting means within said aperture adapted to deflect the point of a needle towards said edge as it passes through said aperture said deflecting means lying in the path of movement of the needle; said foot having a forward extension with one edge thereof coinciding with said edge of said groove for guiding the foided edge of the material to the needle, said extension having a lateral plate for supporting the folded material as it is fed to the needle.

6. A blind stitching attachment according to claim 1, wherein the plane of the bottom of the foot to the left of said guiding means is on a higher level than that of the portion to the right of said foot.

,7. A blind stitching attachment according to claim 1 wherein the presser foot shank is pivoted to the presser foot and the shank is laterally ad justable with respect to the foot.

8, A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding means extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, and having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture overlying said guide means in part, a presser wheel mounted in said aperture for rotation upon engagement with the moving material to be stitched, said wheel having means thereon movable into the path of a needle and adapted to deflect the same in its stitching movements.

9. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding means extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, and having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture overlying said guide means in part, a presser wheel mounted for rotation in said aperture upon engagement with the moving material to be stitched, said wheel having a cam on one ace movable i o the o of a needle dapted detect the same ing rneve me ts.-v

0. A third st hin attachm nt or a se in ac in compr in a pre ser foo having a S ani; portion o a t hmen to he pres e bar of the machine, sa d foot ha ng a mate ia told en rh i means exte d n long tudinally on he ot= torn ac the eof, n h v ng a n edle ecei ng aperture extendin th ough the body thereof; a Wall of said ap r ure overlying said guide m ans n part; a p s e w eel loosely mounted :for otation i sa d aperture u on en a ement wit the mov n materia to be st tc ed. sa d. wheel hav n a am n o por n of one f ce thereof period ca ly movable into t pa h of the dorm wardly m ving n edle and ada t d to periodically deflect the same in its. st t hin movem n s- 1. blind s it hi g atta hment accord n to la m 10, i whic the pr ss r fo t has a shaft.

loosely iou nalled therein, an said pre ser wheel s loos ly mounted on said sha t for rotation and for vert cal a d lat ral m ve ent w th r pec to aid fo t; and m ans f r s i ntl lookin aid shaft in aid foot.

12.- A bl n stitching tt hm nt fo a sew ng machine comprising a presser foot having a shank Portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, d s ank portion b in pi fl fid With respect to said foot and ein l teral adjustable thereon; a f havin a material fold snid-v ing groove extending longitudinally on the bot tom face thereof, one wall of said groove having a c rvilin ar en ratrix for engaging and l ft n the folded edge of the material; a needle receiv" ing aperture in said foot having a wall coinciding in part with said curvilinear wall; a shaft strade dlin aid p rture and l o ely iournalled in said f t n each side o aid aperture; means for resiliently locking said shaft in said foot;- a presser wheel mounted for rotation on said shaft, said wheel being loosely supported for vertical and lateral mflvement; one face of said wheel having cam means extending over a portion thereof, said cam being periodically rotatable into the path of a downwardly moving needle and adapted to deflect the same towards said curvi-i linear wall upon rotation of said wheel when in engagement with the material being stitched; aid pre ser fo t havi a forward extension with one edge aligned with said curvilinear wall to guide the folded edge of the material, said extension having a lateral plate for supporting the folded edge as it is fed to the needle; the plane of the bottom of the presser foot to the right of said groove being at a higher level than that to the left of said groove.

13. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding means extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, and having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture overlying said guide means in part, a presser wheel mounted for rotation in said aperture upon engagement with the moving material to be stitched, said wheel having an abutment on one face movable into the path of a needle and adapted to deflect same in its stitching movements and means on said presser foot for yieldingly urging said abutment periodically into the path of the needle to deflect the same.

14. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof for receiving and guiding a folded edge; means on said foot for increasing or decreasing the width of said groove; said foot having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture coinciding with at least one edge of said groove, and means within said aperture adapted to deflect the pointof a needle towards said edge as it passes through said aperture.

15. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof for receiving and guiding a folded edge; a plate on the bottom of said foot and being laterally adjustable to increase or decrease the width of said groove; said foot having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture coinciding with at least one edge of said groove, and

deflecting means within said aperture adapted to deflect the point of a needle towards said edge as it passes through said aperture,

16. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof for receiving and guiding a folded edge; a plate on the bottom of said foot and being laterally adjustable to increase or decrease the width of said groove; the plane of the bottom of said plate being at a higher level than the plane of the bottom of the remaining portion of said presser foot; said foot having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture coinciding with at least one edge of said groove, and deflecting means within said aperture adapted to deflect the point of a needle towards said edge as it passes through said aperture.

17. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, means on said foot for increasing or decreasing the width of said groove; said foot having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture overlying said groove in part; a presser wheel mounted in said aperture for rotation upon engagement with the moving material to be stitched, said wheel having means thereon movable into the path of a needle of the machine and adapted to deflect same in its stitching movements.

18. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot having a shank portion for attachment to a presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding groove extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, a plate on the bottom of said foot adjustable to increase or decrease the width of said groove; said foot having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture overlying said groove in part; a presser wheel mounted in said aperture for rotation upon engagement with the moving material to be stitched, said wheel having means thereon movable into the path or a needle of the machine and adapted to deflect same in its stitching movements.

19. A blind stitching attachment for a sewing machine comprising a presser foot, means on said foot for attaching same to the presser bar of the machine, said foot having a material fold guiding means extending longitudinally on the bottom face thereof, said foot having a needle receiving aperture extending through the body thereof, a wall of said aperture overlying said guide means in part, and deflecting means on said foot above the material guiding means adapted to deflect the point of a needle towards said guiding means as it passes through said aperture.

WILLIAM: C. HAINES.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 291,100 Simpson Jan. 1, 1884 525,042 Borton Aug. 28, 1894 871,454 Stevens Nov. 19, 1907 1,325,365 McCollum Dec. 16, 1919 1,387,619 Rosenthal Aug. 16, 1921 1,918,643 Heck- July 18, 1933 2,341,686 Billington Feb. 15, 1944 2,478,073 Antonelli Aug. 2, 1949' 

